3 Bizarre Pregnancy Trends That Give Me the Heebs

When I was expecting my second son, I wanted to do something special to document my last pregnancy. I didn't quite have the confidence (or budget) for professional maternity photos, so I decided to take my own pictures ... after I'd had my giant belly decorated top to bottom with a temporary henna tattoo. It was a wonderful experience and I loved how the design turned out, but I did get a few raised eyebrows over the images when I first shared them online. For instance: U R POISINING UR BABBY!!

Which is all to say, I totally understand that one person's individual choice for commemorating their pregnancy may not be appealing to someone else, and we're all special unique snowflakes etc. etc. etc. -- but I still think there are a few pregnancy trends popping up lately that are weird as hell.

For instance, these 3 unusual ways of celebrating the miracle of life:

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The freaky fetal Photoshop job. I've seen this popping up on Pinterest and other places recently, and all I can say is GAH. Granted, I've always been one of those doofuses who can't make heads or penises from an ultrasound image ("Awww, it's ... a Rorschach test?"), but there is just something disturbing about seeing a grainy black-and-white Skeletor copied-and-pasted onto someone's belly.

The ultrasound party. I don't think I'd go so far as to agree that the trend of paying a tech to perform scans on the mom-to-be in front of a crowd raises "serious ethical issues," but it does seem rife with the potential for disaster. For one thing, who's really interested in watching an ultrasound other than the parents and maybe their immediate family? For another thing, what if the scan turns up a medical problem? Do you really want to go through that while you're hosting a party?

The fetus encased in resin. No thank you to these models converted from ultrasound/MRI data. I mean, the technology is amazing, no doubt about it, but also yikes? Plus, it costs $1,230 and comes in a jewelry box. Also you can get a tiny version on a keychain. WTF?